Have you decided to pursue a career in the expanding field of human resources? It’s an excellent choice of profession, as this career offers variety and intellectual stimulation, the chance to do good for your organization, and an opportunity to earn a salary in the six-figure range.
Your next step is to earn a degree in HR, and there’s no better way to do it than online. Online education saves time and money and offers the opportunity to choose a program anywhere in the U.S. But who wants to spend more time earning a degree than they have to?
Discover how to obtain the quickest HR degree and explore the range of job opportunities that will be accessible to you upon completion. Keep reading for more information.
How To Earn Your HR Degree Faster
If earning your degree quickly is your primary aim, choose a program with as few credits as possible. Also, consider your chosen school’s transfer policies. The more credits you can transfer, the less time you’ll spend in class, and you’ll save money, too, since most schools charge by credit hour.
If you are highly motivated to finish your degree quickly and have no other significant commitments, consider taking an overload of courses. Most schools on a semester-based schedule consider 12-15 credits a full-time load. It is possible to manage 18 credits if you are focused and organized. However, this leaves little time for other responsibilities and is not a good idea if you work full-time or have heavy family commitments.
Another way to save time is to take courses during the summer or holiday breaks. During the summer months, schools typically provide a wide variety of courses. Additionally, certain schools may offer short, intensive classes during holiday breaks, such as a three-week course during the December break. You might only be able to take a single course in that time, but it could get you three credit hours closer to graduation.
If you already have human resources experience, see if you can take advantage of prior learning assessments (PLA) at your school. PLA allows you to earn credits for work accomplished outside of a classroom, whether on-the-job training, military service, independent study, or certificate programs.
It may also benefit you to see if your chosen school offers accelerated programs. With these options, you earn both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in less than the time it would take you to earn them separately. Some courses you take offer dual credit at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, meaning your master’s degree program can take as little as one year.
What You Can Do With an HR Degree
Human resources is a field that is growing and changing rapidly. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the need for HR professionals such as human resource managers will increase over the next decade by seven percent or more, meaning additional, well-paying jobs will be available for HR graduates.
Here are a few of the career options you have with an online HR degree:
Human resources specialist
HR specialists make a median pay of $62,290 annually, with the top ten percent earning well into the six figures. According to the BLS, these professionals recruit, train, screen, and interview job applicants and work with newly hired workers to ensure their transition to the organization goes smoothly. They may also handle compensation and benefits as well as training and employee relations. A typical HR specialist position requires a bachelor’s degree, but positions that hire master’s degree candidates may offer a higher level of responsibility and compensation. The job outlook for HR specialists is expected to increase by about eight percent over the next decade, meaning that there will be roughly 58,800 new professionals in the field by 2031.
Training and development specialist
Training and development specialists plan and administer programs to improve the skills and knowledge of an organization or business’s employees, according to the BLS. They earn a median salary of $61,570 annually and are eligible for entry-level jobs if they have a bachelor’s degree. Having strong communication skills is essential for professionals in this field. Additionally, any prior experience in education would be advantageous. As employers increasingly work to upgrade their employees’ skills, this job will see an annual growth rate of eight percent, which is faster than average. Although most HR positions are office-based, training and development specialists may be required to travel to training sites to give presentations and lead training activities.
Labor relations specialist
Another position that is open to you with a degree in human resources is labor relations specialist. This job earns a median salary of $77,010 per year, and their primary role is to interpret and administer labor contracts. This field is growing slower than others in the HR industry. In fact, the BLS predicts a three-percent decline over the next decade. However, well-educated professionals still have opportunities to find positions that offer advancement and satisfying work. Labor relations specialists may have taken courses in labor relations, industrial relations, or other business classes in addition to HR coursework. These professionals serve as representatives of labor unions or company management in bargaining situations. They need excellent communication skills and the ability to engage in diplomacy to ensure that the needs of both employees and employers are met satisfactorily.
Human resources manager
Human resources managers make a median pay of $126,230 a year and generally need five years or more of work experience to earn this job. They are the leaders of human resources teams, planning, coordinating, and directing the administrative functions of their organization. They are employed in nearly every industry, including higher education, law offices, and businesses of all kinds. Some positions require a master’s degree, depending on the needs of the job and the size of the organization. The job outlook is good, with seven percent growth anticipated over the next decade. The largest employers of human resources managers are professional, scientific, and technical services organizations.
Our Research
This list features some of the country’s fastest online HR degree programs. Each school featured is a nonprofit, accredited institution, either public or private, with a high standard of academic quality for post-secondary institutions.
We evaluated each school’s program on tuition costs, admission, retention and graduation rates, faculty, and reputation. Then, we calculated the Intelligent Score on a scale of 0 to 100. Read more about our ranking methodology.
Next, we compared this comprehensive list of the fastest online HR degree programs to a list of aggregated college rankings from reputable publications, such as U.S. News & World Report, to simplify a student’s college search. We pored through these rankings so students don’t have to.
The 50 Fastest Online HR Degree Programs
